i have hens and am now thinking of ducks??

[Wexford Chuck]

can anyone please advise me of some good websites for ducks, i have no idea how to keep ducks but have kept chickens for a couple of years and was looking at getting some ducks. Any advice on breeds for eggs and also how best to house and feed them would be appreciated.
Thanks xx

 

[Kedreeva]

Websites on duck care that I've seen are stupidly vague.

I can't really give you much advice other than to say- they need fresh water every day and they are a MESS when they are little, so be prepared for a lot of work. With my ducklings, I am dumping their water 3 times a day, but I could dump it every 15 minutes because that's how fast they get it to go from clean to disgusting. They eat a TON more than chickens, so you can't feed them medicated starter or they'll poison themselves on it by eating so much. And what goes in, must come out- food + water intake is very high in ducks so be prepared for that mess.

Once they're grown they're somewhat better. Still needing fresh water at least daily and still a mess but if you have them free ranging they are a mess spread out over your yard and thus less stinky.

Personally, despite how adorable they are and how pretty they are once they're grown, I'm glad the ones I hatched were hatched for someone else to take. The only one I'm keeping is the one that has special needs that can't be met where the eggs came from, and one duck is a heck of a lot less trouble than more than one duck.

 

[ranchhand]

Quote:
Gee, you could check the Index page and find the section titled Ducks..... lots of info there!

 

[woodmort]

Are you sure? Been there, done that and wouldn't go back to it. Compared to hens, ducks are messy and need a lot of water. Of course if you're a real sadist, try geese.